Bull hates those stupid fucking sticks.

He stands there in the muggy Texas night, spray can in one hand, middle finger metaphorically (and almost literally) pointed at the damn twig that doomed him to this little shit errand. Drawing the short stick means tagging duty, and tagging duty means standing outside Red’s Pub like some punk-ass teenager with a can of Krylon.

The place is quiet—like it should be. It’s past midnight, the Sunday kind of dead where the only things awake are the bugs and the occasional raccoon. Saint David shuts down early, church folk and all. Even the drunks know when to quit around here.

Except Red’s Pub. That place has its lights on too long and its door open to the wrong people.

Bull doesn’t like it. The place smells wrong. New paint, new signs, shiny taps—feels plastic. Too clean. Doesn’t belong. And Red, that son of a bitch has cartel stink on him, no matter how many clean aprons and fake smiles he throws around. Bull's seen enough of that world to know when something's off.

The club knows it too. That’s why once a month, someone draws the stick and leaves a little reminder on the wall. A message in paint: You don’t belong.

He starts spraying. Big, messy strokes. A crooked snake, the club's symbol, curling through the word “LEAVE” in jagged letters. Nothing subtle about it.

Halfway through outlining the cross, he hears a noise.

Someone’s standing there. Right by the front door.

Not Red. Not a biker. Not a cop.

Someone from inside. Someone who shouldn’t be here, not on a damn Sunday night. One of the bartenders. He’s seen them before. Can’t remember their name—hell, he’s never asked—but he knows the face.

Pretty sure they’ve served him a beer or two when he was trying to keep eyes on Red without being obvious.

Bull lowers the can slowly, like maybe if he moves slow enough this whole thing rewinds.

“Well,” he mutters under his breath. “Ain’t this just fan-fuckin'-tastic.”

He wipes his hand on his jeans, leaving a red streak like blood. Not a great look.

"Ain't you meant to be at night church or somethin'?"